Gabriel's Lost Abilities
by CastielFan-Kari
Summary: Michael asks Gabriel to join his side in the upcoming war, but he refuses. As a lesson, Michael takes away his powers for several days and Gabriel experiences what it's like to become completely human. Takes place before he shows up in Supernatural.
1. Chapter 1: Losing Power

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural, I just think it's really awesome.

Base Idea: Gabriel loses his abilities for a few days as a lesson from Michael.

Problems: Okay, so some people, after reading this, might ask 'But Michael didn't know where Gabriel was?' Well, there was no indication of that. Angels can tell who other angels are, so I'm fairly sure that in all the years Gabriel was on Earth at least one angel has seen him at some point.

PLEASE REVIEW! This is only the first chapter, more will follow!

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"You are getting too arrogant for your own good brother." Michael warned. He was in his true form, and knew he couldn't stay long or else he'd be seen by one of the many wandering humans and he'd burn their eyes out.

Gabriel just laughed and leaned back in his recliner, looking up at his brother. "After dropping out from heaven I find I can be as cocky as I want. Now that I'm not some head honcho up there I don't answer to ANYONE, I don't have to be respectful. To the clueless humans I am just another person. To hunters I am a trickster."

"The more you abuse your abilities the more likely it is that some hunter WILL come looking for you."

Gabriel shrugged and conjured a chocolate bar, then ate it, enjoying the snapping sound it made when he bit into it. "So a hunter comes. Why should I fear them? Poof, I'm gone in an instant." He demonstrated just that, appearing a few moments later in a different area of his flat.

"Because among the hunters are Dean and Sam." That caused Gabriel to pause for a moments thought. "Brother, I need to leave, but before I go, are you certain that your choice not to help in the upcoming war is wise?"

Gabriel sighed. "I will not help my brothers fight. I will not take part in it. That's why I left Heaven, I did not expect for the argument to follow me. Brother, I left because I couldn't stand the fighting. YOUR fighting."

"Then if you refuse, I will leave, but I do warn you, don't continue abusing your powers or Sam and Dean will pick up your trail."

"Michael, I am not some cherub, I am an archangel whether I reside in Heaven or not. I am powerful enough to outsmart and outmaneuver a couple of hunters." He shrugged like it was no big deal.

"Then what if you had no powers?" Michael asked suddenly. "You take too much for granted Gabriel. You left your brothers in Heaven. You knew you could survive on your own. But what if you didn't have those powers to play with? What if you were cut off from Heaven?"

"You wouldn't dare." Gabriel snarled.

"Just a taste of what an angel who abandons his brothers would usually go through." Michael said, and his gentle tone as he hinted at the loss of Gabriel's abilities infuriated him.

"No Michael!" He spat, and when the archangel rose and left in a loud rumble and spurt of light he shouted after him, "DON'T YOU DARE!"

* * *

Gabriel had been pacing in his room for five minutes. They couldn't cut him off from Heaven, could they? Force him to be human? No, never! He stopped. What if they had already? The hinting of Michael had been that the loss of his abilities wouldn't be gradual as usual, but all at once, drawn from his words, 'just a taste'. So perhaps it wouldn't be for long. But still...

He snapped his fingers and was overwhelmingly relieved when a piece of candy appeared before him. He popped it into his mouth, glad that his brother hadn't followed through on his threat.

When the next morning came, Gabriel left his room for his job. Okay, so being a janitor wasn't spectacularly exciting or anything, but he had to keep a low profile. I mean, shouting out to the world "I AM AN ANGEL" or something wouldn't really be that wise, would it?

He worked without complaint, thinking about the next 'trick' he'd pull, and on who. Perhaps he could get his town noticed by Dean and Sam. He wanted to meet those two.

At his midday break he snapped his fingers, wanting to summon a brief chocolate-filled lunch. Surprised and worried, he snapped them again. And again. And again. But no matter how hard he focused, no matter what he wished to happen now when he snapped, nothing happened. His powers were gone.


	2. Chapter 2: Beds and Beards

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural or it's characters, but I DO love how Gabriel is portrayed.

Base Idea of this chapter: Gabriel discovers sleep, aging and depression.

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When everyone in the building came running to see what had made a scream of anger so loud it could be heard over half the town, Gabriel had already left. Although this time, instead of zapping away, he'd had to walk.

As he walked he looked around him, and for the first time he really noticed the humans. And as he watched them, watched what they were like, he was thoroughly horrified. To go from being an archangel, capable of making anything appear out of thin air, being able to heal and resurrect... and stick people in time loops, heh, he wished he could have used that on someone sometime... to being a powerless human.

When he got back to his flat and looked around he was relieved to see that at least everything he'd created before was still there. And because he was posing as a human he still had basic human essentials, like a bed.

"A bed." Gabriel said flatly, "That's depressing." Because now that he was human he'd have to sleep at some point. Sleep, the loss of consciousness. Yes, that would be rather scary, and to have to do so EVERY night! He shuddered. How did humans stand it?

"Alright Michael." He sighed, weary of being powerless even though he'd only found out about losing his abilities half an hour ago. "You've had your fun, now give me my abilities back." He waited. Nothing happened. "What if I'm polite for once? Please may I have them back?" Still nothing happened. "Michael this is NOT FUNNY! So you're higher up on the chain of command then I am, SO WHAT? YOU CAN'T CUT ME OFF FROM HEAVEN!" He was shouting now, flying into a rage and kicking things over because now they wouldn't just fly around at his command.

"I'M MORE KNOWN THAN YOU ARE! I DON'T GIVE A DAMN THAT YOU'RE MORE POWERFUL! GIVE ME BACK MY FUCKING POWERS!"

He screamed until his voice gave way several hours later, only another thing that wouldn't happen to an angel. With a hoarse "Fuck you Michael." He fell onto his bed which, until this point, had only ever been used for sex. But now he felt a wave of exhaustion overcome him, which was more than a little frightening. He wondered what this strange floaty sensation was that overcame him when he closed his eyes, then he fell into a deep, haunted sleep.

When Gabriel awoke he bolted upright and backed away from the bed uncertainly. THAT had certainly been unpleasant! Losing consciousness for... he checked a clock... FIVE HOURS! He was shaking and remembered the images, the dreams. Where he had been stuck as human until his vessel grew old and died with him it. And he supposed that he would age now that he was no longer a true angel.

To test that theory he staggered over to the bathroom and peered into the mirror. A thin layer of rubble coated his mouth area. "I'm... aging..." He whispered, and now that he faced mortality he felt a crushing weight. Was this... what... depression?

"Emotions. Funny Michael. Hilarious. I have emotions already! I trick people, so that's joy, distrust, contentment, whatever. And I have anger, mostly directed at you right now. But, come on, other emotions too? Depression? What is this, some sort of joke? Is taking away my powers not amusing enough? This really isn't funny. Are you listening _brother_? Because, I swear, if I don't get my abilities back, you are so FUCKING DEAD! I don't know how I'm going to find you, but I swear you are so DEAD if I don't get my powers back." And he put his head in his hands.


	3. Chapter 3: Illness, Food and Zachariah

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural or it's characters, but I WOULD have liked to see this scenario acted out...

Base Idea of this chapter: Gabriel becomes ill and finds he now requires sustenance. Zachariah appears to him to 'check up on him', but really enjoys taunting him.

Problems: I don't think Zachariah is quite in character, but he's nasty either way.

PLEASE REVIEW

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Several hours later a very stiff Gabriel crawled from the bathroom. He'd screamed to Michael in his hoarse voice, at this point knowing that Michael wasn't listening, but needing to try all the same. He'd then discovered illness as his rage threw him into what humans called a 'fever' and he'd thrown up several times.

By now Gabriel had a vague idea of what was going on. Michael wanted him to understand that leaving his brothers had serious reparations, but Michael himself didn't seem to realize that no matter which side Gabriel chose he'd be abandoning a big brother. That was why he was neutral in the first place.

"Being human sucks." He groaned as he lay on his bed, feeling thoroughly rotten. "I'm ill and mortal, I require the loss of consciousness every day and... there's something else..." He couldn't quite put his finger on it. An almost empty feeling inside him. "Oh, right, that must be what being hungry feels like." He knew that there was no food in his house because up until this point he just waved his hand and some appeared before him.

He staggered up from the bed and started rummaging around in doors. Having a human job meant that he was paid every few weeks, and he hadn't needed the money so he'd stashed it somewhere... he opened a drawer and found it stuffed with bills, a strange currency he knew rather little about, so he took a random amount and stuffed it into his pockets.

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"What do you have that's sweet?" Gabriel asked the waitress as he plopped down into a booth.

"Well, we have-"

"No, never-mind, don't answer, I'll take one order of everything that's even remotely desert-like." He waved his hand dismissively and she left in a confused manner.

When it arrived he stared at it miserably for several minutes. "Maybe I'm too upset too eat." He said to himself. There was a brief pause. "Nah." He picked up the spoon, intent on drowning his problems in ice-cream and chocolate sauce.

"You're gonna give yourself heartburn." Remarked Zachariah, sitting across from him.

"I'm in a really bad mood." Gabriel growled through a spoonful of whipped cream. "What are you doing here?"

"Michael asked me to see how you're faring."

"Michael did, did he? Tell that sonofabitch that I want my powers back NOW!" The shout brought stares from the surrounding tables, but Gabriel completely ignored them.

"You might want to be more respectful to him, _Gabe_. You may be my big brother, but you are no match for him. This is a lesson for you. Are you learning it?"

"The only thing I'm learning is how crappy humans have it."

"That's almost but not quite the lesson that-"

"I don't give a crap about some lesson! I've just lost EVERYTHING, I don't feel in a learning mood!"

"Gabriel, brother, all you have to do is say yes, join the angels, come back to Heaven, and we'll give you your powers back."

"Never." Gabriel said irritatedly. How could no-one understand? He didn't want to pick a side, he wanted to remain neutral, why couldn't they just let him stay neutral? He took another bite and a stabbing pain arose in his head and he leaned forward, cupping it and moaning. He'd never experienced this before, but he believed it was what humans called a 'brain-freeze'. Ouch.

"You look terrible." Zachariah commented almost gleefully.

"I think my vessel's sick." Gabriel coughed.

"No Gabe. Your vessel isn't sick. YOU are." Gabriel shook his head, not wanting to hear this. "YOU are sick, because now that you're human you can't escape your vessel, you can't heal it. You have to endure whatever hardships a human normally endures. Pain, illness, grief, guilt... and all because you refuse to help your brothers."

"Shut up." Gabriel said through gritted teeth. Zachariah leaned over the table, cupped Gabriel's chin in his hand and rose his eyes to meet his own.

"Make me..." He whispered and Gabriel saw it then. He was enjoying this, enjoying making fun of someone he would normally be terrified of. Zachariah got up and started walking away. "I have to report back to Michael you know, I think I'll tell him how much you're enjoying your lack of power."

"I hate you." Gabriel growled because there was little else he could do or say, and he was fairly sure there was some truth in that.

"Good, hate. Just another lowly human emotion." The angel vanished, leaving Gabriel in misery.


	4. Chapter 4: Guilt and Despair

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural. I wish they'd put more of Gabriel in though...

Base Idea for this chapter: Gabriel discovers guilt, and Michael tries to talk to him, but Gabriel is too pissed off to listen.

Problems: It isn't very long, sorry about that but I have a test coming up that I need to study for. I'll add more tomorrow.

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As he finished eating a newspaper headline caught Gabriel's eye. It read:

**MAN STILL MISSING**

AFTER TWO WEEKS OF SEARCHING HIS FAMILY IS STARTING TO GIVE UP

Gabriel remembered the look on his face as he had tricked that man, killing him. He remembered everyone he'd ever caused the death of, and it occurred to him then that he'd never once felt remorse. But he felt something now. Something unbearably overwhelming, something that had never even crossed his mind before. Guilt. He was sorry. Sorry that he'd killed not just this man, but EVERYONE that he had.

"No. Not that." He said, he got up and left, leaving a large wad of bills on the table. "Not guilt, I can deal with anything else, but not guilt. It was... it was FUN tricking them. FUN, not terrible." But saying it didn't really make him believe it anymore. It HAD been fun then, but now? Now he wished he'd just left them all alone.

Run. Run to get away. He ran all the way back to his flat and slammed his door, as if that would keep all these strange human emotions out, but they seemingly caught up with him, and some faint part of his mind identified his current one as despair.

Would he ever be an angel again? Would Michael ever give him his abilities back? Would he be stuck in this meat-suit forever? He got up and tried to shake it off, but it had little effect.

"Not gonna think about that." He said shakily, and decided that maybe some television would get his mind off it. He sat in front of his big screen and flicked it on.

"Hello." Michael said appearing suddenly on the screen.

"AAH!" Gabriel exclaimed, not expecting that.

"How are you enjoying your time as human?" Michael asked. Gabriel gave him a haughty, irritated look and changed the channel. Michael did not reappear.


	5. Chapter 5: Powering Up

Base Idea of chapter: Gabriel regains his abilities.

Problems: Why did Gabriel get to keep his abilities after leaving Heaven? I'm confused...

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Gabriel sat on the floor of the bathroom and wiped the vomit from his mouth. He was ill. He was tired. He was guilt-stricken and remorseful. He was despairing. The TV in the lounge turned back on, and when Gabriel staggered out he saw Michael once again.

"Brother, you look terrible."

"No thanks to you."

"Do you understand now? Do you understand why it is better to help your siblings not push them away?"

"Yeah, I get the message." Gabriel coughed and he realized he was shaking. "Help your douche-bag brothers or else you are stripped of your powers and turned into a sick, powerless human. Oh yeah, hell of a way to get people to join your side."

"Gabriel, I want you by my side. I have to fight my own little brother, I don't want to do this. I need a brother I can rely on. You."

"Yeah, I'll pass. And you don't NEED to fight anyone. You're doing this, not fate or some crappy prophecy. This is YOUR CHOICE!" Gabriel sat on the floor because he was so tired he didn't trust his legs to keep him standing.

"I understand you're angry, but-"

"I don't give a damn. I really don't. I just want it to be over, and I refuse to take a part in it, no matter what you threaten me with."

"I'm not threatening you with anything. I'm going to return your abilities." Michael said quietly.

"What?" Gabriel asked, not believing his ears.

"I'm going to return your angelic abilities." Michael repeated. "Not only because I love you brother, but also because God has commanded it."

"God?" Laughed Gabriel. "He doesn't give a damn about any of his angels anymore."

"On the contrary, He favors you brother. He picked you, not me, not Lucifer, YOU to spread the word of the Savior's birth. Gabriel, why do you think we let you keep your abilities once you left Heaven? Because God commanded it, and He'd be furious if He found out we'd taken them away. I cannot force you to take a side brother, but I must give you your abilities back. Live safely brother, and don't attract the attention of any hunters." Michael's face disappeared.

Was it true? Did God favor him? More importantly, did he have his abilities back? Hardly daring to hope, Gabriel raised his hand. Now that he thought about it, he didn't feel tired anymore, or ill. No he felt... good, powerful. He felt like he wanted to wreak havoc once again!

Gabriel snapped his fingers and was ecstatic when rewarded with party decorations and women dancing just for him. He had his powers back once again!

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So this is the last chapter. I hope everyone enjoyed it! Thank-you for the reviews! This is most certainly not my last story with Gabriel. I love his character!


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